US Surgeon Partners With Medtronic To Perform Live Medical Device Implantation Surgery

St. Luke's University Health Network’s neurosurgeon, Dr. Steven Falowski, partnered with the leading medical device manufacturer, Medtronic, to demonstrate the implantation of the devices during a live surgery. The intent of the collaboration is to promote efficient use of the devices in patients with nerve disorders.

Medical experts are hoping the video feed will lead to advancement in terms of product development in the field of neuromodulation for patients with nerve disorders. A majority of patients suffer from pain and disability because of the disorders related to the nervous system, including Parkinson's disease, brain tumors and other brain- and spine-related injuries.

A live video feed is taken by the engineers at the Minneapolis campus with the help of a specialty camera system as Falowski performs the surgery to implant pain pumps, deep brain stimulators and spinal cord stimulators. During the live surgery that took place Thursday, engineers witnessed for the first time how their devices are being used.

The News Medical reported the engineers had the opportunity to ask questions during the live surgery to understand the procedure and determine what improvements need to be made.

“We’ve been working to develop this capability for several years,” said Falowski, who implants nearly 150 neurostimulators annually.

“The live feed, which includes a specialty camera attached to my surgical headlamp, allows Medtronic engineers to see a surgery from my visual perspective and allows the engineers to see exactly how I am using their equipment.”

The camera system captured the procedure only when the patient was fully draped. In addition, the technology only recorded the operative field.